al-Baqara 179

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This axis brings together 2 instances of the use of this verse in the books of Muhammad Shahrur, linking it to the concepts and arguments that appear around it.

Text of the verse as cited

And in retribution there is life for you, O people of understanding.

Reader’s answer

Question

How does Shahrur employ the Qur’anic statement, “And in retribution there is life for you, O people of understanding,” in his conception of retribution?

Shahrur employs the verse to support his reading of retribution as a measure that confronts, in exceptional cases, organized crime and the mafia. He holds that this passage prioritizes the preservation of life and the elimination of danger over the completion of formal procedures that he considers necessary in ordinary crimes.

Shahrur reads al-Baqara 179 within his discussion of “retribution in cases of killing,” and treats it as support for an exceptional application concerning organized crime rather than ordinary homicide. He links the verse’s description of retribution as life to the idea of eliminating the mafia and organized crime, contrasting this with his distinction between such cases and ordinary crimes, in which he requires the concurrence of form and substance in punishment.

Citation and location

the Book and the Qur’an — p. 399.

Limits of the reading

  • This citation establishes Shahrur’s use of the verse in his argument concerning retribution and organized crime; it does not establish a linguistic analysis of the phrase “people of understanding.”
  • Describing this use as an elucidation of the verse’s general purpose goes beyond what the citation explicitly states; what is established is his particular presentation of the verse within his theory of punishments.

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Brief reading

Shahrur employs it in a linguistic analysis of the term “ulu,” then adduces it to show that the purpose of retribution is the preservation of life, not vengeance.

Axes

  • Linguistic and semantic
  • Legal
  • Those vested with authority: 2
  • The life of retribution: 2

Its place in the conceptual network

It brings together semantic analysis and the construction of the legal meaning of retribution.

The verse’s role in the argument

  • Context: 1
  • Support: 1

Instances of use

  • The Messengerly Sunna and the Prophetic Sunna, p. 148: He mentions the verse in listing the occurrences of the term “ulu” in order to establish an analysis of its linguistic meaning before denying its connection to rulers.
    • Concept: Those vested with authority
    • Function of the verse here: Context
    • Textual citation: “The first of them is in al-Baqara 179 and the last in al-Muzzammil 11”
  • the Book and the Qur’an, p. 399: He adduces it to show that the purpose of retribution is the preservation of life and deterrence, not traditional vengeance.
    • Concept: The life of retribution
    • Function of the verse here: Support
    • Textual citation: “It is the statement concerning the verse of retribution … {And in retribution there is life for you, O people of understanding} (al-Baqara 179)”

This page is presented within the general atlas-building methodology.

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Muhammad Shahrur Atlas